Surprises
by Serenity Dragonrider
Summary: The Draconians get invied to participate in a dragon race. At first everything goes by without incident. But during the victory lap Queen Aurora suddeny crashes. The reason she's ill is a surprise that will change the lives of Aurora, her family, and the entire dragon species.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Chris and Windwalker they belong to Splendidguy44 who wrote a fanfic that introduces them, check it out, it's good. **

The atmosphere in the air around Berk was colder than normal, winter was on the way. The Vikings were already talking about Snoggletog and the Dragons were talking about migration. Hiccup and Toothless walked through the village both fulfilling their rolls as chief and Alpha. The place was already covered in three feet of snow. The walkways were all shoveled, thanks to the dragons. At that moment Astrid and Stormfly ran up.

"Hiccup everyone wants to do something special with the dragons before they migrate," she said. "But they can't think of what." Hiccup and Toothless exchanged a glance. Toothless would be the only dragon remaining on Berk, partially due to his missing tail fin and partially due to the fact that he loved his rider very much. At that moment Hiccup spotted a small flock of sheep near a house and he got an idea.

"Lets have one more Dragon Race," he said. "We haven't had a race in a while."

"Great," said Astrid. "And to make it special, we can invite our Draconian allies. They've never raced."

"I like it, I'll go ask them myself," Hiccup said. "I'll try to be back by tomorrow." He turned to Toothless who looked excited. Hiccup mounted him, then turned back to Astrid.

"Think you can hold down this place for a night?" he asked. Astrid rolled her eyes.

"Do you really need to ask me that?" she asked. Hiccup smiled at her, then clicked the stirrup and Toothless took off. They turned to the south heading for Draconia. Toothless was excited to see the place ever since the Dragon Healer, Serenity, told him it existed. He picked up speed.

While they flew over the ocean they practiced maneuvers for the race. They spun, flipped and corkscrewed. Hiccup even practiced using his leather wings, which he was getting better at. After several hours of flying very fast they soon reached the Draconian waters. Though Toothless had never been to the country, he somehow knew the way by gut feeling. He soared over the ocean and was soon joined by other dragons. Most of them were Whippertails and Blackfangs, but once in a while a Scauldron or a Sea Shocker would surface. They were skimming the surface for fish. Hiccup and Toothless looked at each of them to see if the King and Queen were among them, they weren't. So the two of them sped off. Before long they spotted mountains on the horizon. More dragons filled the sky and sea.

"What do you think Re does all day when he's not helping us win a war?" Hiccup asked Toothless. The Night Fury crooned in response. They approached the shoreline and saw the massive Golden Gates that sealed off a huge turquoise lagoon. Snow covered mountains surrounded the lagoon. Draconia had gotten snowed on as well. A good foot of it covered the ground. Toothless sped over the gates and the lagoon, and they both spotted the mountainous castle, towering over the lagoon and the surrounding mountains. As they approached it Toothless let out a loud roar, announcing their arrival. They circled around the tall spires. The castle huge, dwarfing the village of Berk. Sunlight bounced off the many windows that littered the side of the mountain. The sires were connected to each other via stone bridges.

Soon Hiccup landed Toothless in a large snowy yard at the opposite side of the castle from the lagoon. The yard was bigger than the Cove and was sealed off by another set of gates, silver ones. Hiccup turned to the tall castle doors that had dragon carvings all over them. At that moment Hiccup and Toothless heard the flapping wings and the thud of a dragon landing on the snow. Hiccup spun around to see Queen Aurora standing behind him and folding her blue wings.

"Hello boys," she said cheerfully. "I thought I recognized the call of a Night Fury."

"Sorry if I'm intruding," Hiccup said.

"No, no you're not intruding," said Aurora.

"Where are the others?" Hiccup asked.

"Inside," Aurora said gesturing to the castle. "Well, what can we do for you?" Hiccup was about to answer but suddenly he couldn't remember why he'd come, the sight of the castle had completely driven it out of his mind. But luckily Toothless remembered.

"We were wondering if you and your family would like to join us in a dragon race," he said in Dragontongue.

"A dragon race?" Aurora said, sounding excited.

"Yeah, we were going to have one last dragon race before the dragons migrated," Hiccup said, remembering again. "I was hoping you would join us." Aurora thumped her tail against the snow in thought.

"When are you running it?" she asked.

"Tomorrow," Hiccup said.

"Wow, so soon," Aurora said. "Alright, I will have to ask the others. Why don't you two come inside for a bit." She walked around them and up to the doors. She pushed them open with her front paws. Hiccup and Toothless followed her into the Entrance Hall. It was rather dark, the only light came from outside. When the doors closed the room was dark for a second then a bright, white light filled the room almost as well as the sunlight did.

"Where's the light coming from?" Hiccup asked.

"Is a special crystal that glows in the dark," Aurora said. "There's a huge deposit of them on the southern shore, they're actually a better light source than torches. You two wait here I'll go get the others feel free to look around just don't break anything." She cantered to the double staircase at the far end of the room and flew onto the balcony. When she was out of sight Hiccup glanced around the Entrance Hall. It was the size of Berk's Great Hall. The flagstones were made of blue marble covered by green carpets. The walls were made of the same brown rock at the outside of the mountain. Lining the walls were suits of dragon armor, obviously empty. At the far end of the room, underneath the balcony was a set of double doors that also had carvings of dragons on them. They were flanked by a pair Draconian flags. The glowing crystals were placed in iron baskets that would normally hold fire. Hiccup looked up at the ceiling, which was quite high. Two large, golden chandeliers hung from the ceiling. They two had glowing crystals on them, in the place of candles. In all the Entrance Hall was very big and very fancy. And it was only one room in the massive castle. Hiccup turned his attention to the double doors at the far end. He and Toothless walked up to them. They weren't as big as the front doors. They were made of petrified wood and the handles were made of brass and carved in the shape of eastern dragons. Hiccup carefully pushed the doors open. Toothless followed him into the Great Hall, which was the biggest room either of them ever saw. The whole village of Berk could have fit comfortably inside it, including the arena. The flagstones were made of gold marble. A large horseshoe shaped balcony sat against the wall, held up by massive columns also made of gold marble. The back wall was one big window, looking out at the lagoon. It had started to snow lightly. At the far end of the room were three huge thrones. They were made of gold, marble, and decorated with gems. They sat on platform with three steps up to it. Hanging from the very high ceiling were ten huge chandeliers. Hiccup and Toothless walked around the room getting a better look at things while the waited.

Elsewhere in the castle Aurora had arrived at the top of the tallest tower where her and Re's chamber was. The rest of her family were up there already. She entered the room to find them all sitting in around the room listening to Serenity read one of their favorite books, Dragon Slippers. Sitting on the large round bed was King Re, a large emerald green dragon with with ocean blue eyes. Sitting beside closest to the window was Tenor; a black Night Fury, Blackfang hybrid with large green eyes, and black venomous teeth. Sitting across from Tenor was a female Night Fury with honey gold eyes named Windwalker. She was the alpha of a large group of dragons who lived on one of Draconia's volcanic islands. And sitting beside Windwalker was Re and Aurora's adopted human son, Windwalker's rider, and Serenity's husband, Chris. They all looked up when Aurora came in.

"Who was it?" Tenor asked.

"It was Hiccup actually," said Aurora. "He has invited us all to participate in a dragon race tomorrow."

"Wow, a dragon race?" said Serenity as she marked her place in the book.

"Yes," said Aurora. "And he's waiting downstairs for our answer." They looked at one another.

"Why not," said Re. "It sounds like a lot of fun. A last chance to get out before we turn in for the winter." Serenity out the book down and got to her feet.

"I'll get my stuff," she said. "I'll meet you all in the Entrance Hall." She left the room and headed for hers.

"Is she actually going to compete?" Chris asked. "She hates competition." Chris and Serenity had grown up together in the castle, so he knew Serenity as much as she knew him.

"No, I never put my Dragon Healer in a position where she could get hurt," Re said.

"Even though this is just a game, accidents happen and if something happens to her there will be no one to help the dragons feel better. We can have her as the medical support."

"We have other healers," Tenor pointed out as they made their way towards the Entrance Hall.

"True," Re said. "But I get the feeling those Berkian dragons would be very disappointed if we don't bring her." No one could argue with that. Aurora clicked her talons and all the dragons were suddenly wearing their saddles. She didn't foresee any reason to bring out the dragon armor since they weren't going to war. At that moment they came to the corridor where Serenity's room was. They walked closer to her door just as she came out wearing her riding uniform and carrying her medical bag, along with Chris's coat.

"You ready?" Re asked her.

"Yes sir," Serenity said. She put her bag on his saddle.

"No camping gear?" Chris asked.

"Nope," Serenity said as she held his coat open for him. "I have accommodations on Berk already, and an extra set of camping gear." Chris put his arms into the sleeves of his coat and Serenity slid it onto his shoulders. They continued towards the Entrance Hall.

"Who's going to look after the place while we're gone?" asked Windwalker, worried about her friends on Mt. Vulcan.

"Don't worry Draconia is prepared for anything," Re said. "If we have to leave for any reason the country is able to keep itself afloat. And if there is a real emergency, like one of my volcanoes erupts, they can contact me with a Hermes Dragon and we will fly back as fast as we can. And you don't have to worry about your friends Windwalker, that volcano hasn't erupted since the Ice Age."

They finally arrived at the Entrance Hall. Hiccup and Toothless were waiting patiently, having finished seeing the Great Hall.

"Sorry for the wait," Re told Hiccup. "It takes a while to get down here from the top."

"That's understandable," Hiccup said. They headed outside where it was snowing slightly harder.

"We should take off as soon as possible," Re said. "Before this becomes a blizzard."

"How cold does is get down here?" Hiccup asked as they mounted Toothless.

"It gets pretty cold," said Aurora said. "If seen it get so cold that it was too dangerous for anyone to go outside for whole month." Chris mounted Windwalker and Serenity mounted Re. They took off and flew in the direction of Berk, as the sun began to set. They ascended above the snow clouds so Tenor could get his bearings. They flew in the usual V formation, letting Hiccup and Toothless be in the lead.

"While were on the move," Tenor said. "Why don't you explain the rules and everything."

"Sure," said Hiccup. And explain he did. He told them how to score points using the white sheep, and how to finish a game with the black sheep. He explained the rules and the reason behind them. He also said that the dragons had to wear face paint so the audience could tell them apart.

"So do you have teams?" Aurora asked. "Or is it an individual thing."

"It can be either," Hiccup said. "This time we are having teams."

"Good to know," Tenor said. "And Serenity can be the medical support, since she hates competition."

"Why is that?" Hiccup asked Serenity.

"Competition is the world where no one is friends," Serenity said. "Everyone is always mocking each other, at each other's throats, and someone almost always gets hurt. It's almost as bad war."

"War doesn't usually have rules," Hiccup pointed out.

"True," Serenity agreed. "And I guess it is a better alternative to war. I just with the competitive ones weren't so mean and prideful." Serenity remembered several years ago when the Riders of Berk had gotten into a heated argument about who was better at dragon training and Fishlegs's Gronkle, Meatlug, had been dragonknapped by Alvin the Treacherous.

They talked more as the stars came out and Tenor found it easier to navigate. It took them most of the night to reach the waters around Berk and by the time they saw the island the moon was starting to set. The three riders were feeling very tired by this point. They landed in the plaza, which was very quiet. The stands were already set up for the race. Re spotted the baskets for the sheep, and one of them had the Draconian crest on it.

"You should get some rest," said Hiccup. "We meet you at noon in the arena."

"Alright," said Re.

"How long is this race?" asked Windwalker, and Chris translated.

"As long as it takes to find all the sheep," Hiccup said. "The longest I've seen it go is two hours. See you tomorrow." He and Toothless went up to their house. Serenity led the way up to her old hospital, which she hadn't seen in years. When they got there she and Chris dismounted.

"Wow that's the prettiest tree I've ever seen," said Windwalker looking up at the Golden Apple Tree.

"I grew it myself," Serenity said as she got her medical bag of Re's saddle. "With some help from Lord Draco of course. I gave it to the dragons of Berk, since I can't really carry it on my saddle." She went over to the tree and found the hidden door while Chris unsaddled Windwalker. Serenity opened up the tree trunk and went into the round room where she used to sleep.

"I remember when you slept in the tree," Re said. Aurora laid down in the snow feeling quite tired. Serenity dragged out her spare camping gear from the house and set up sleeping rolls for both her and Chris. The dragons all laid down in the snow.

"Is is going to snow tonight mum?" Chris asked.

"No," Aurora answered. "And even if it did I can always use magic to keep it off the hospital." She rolled onto her back and leaned into her mate. Windwalker laid next to Chris, leaving Tenor to shelter Serenity with his big black wings.

"Why don't you sleep in the tree?" he whispered.

"I thought it was going to snow," Serenity yawned. "But Aurora said it wasn't and she's never wrong." Tenor chuckled just as he fell asleep.

The next morning the Draconians got up at the same time the rest of the village did. Serenity and Chris began putting the face paint on the dragons. They split up the work; Chris painted Windwalker and his dad while Serenity painted Aurora and Tenor. Windwalker got golden yellow zigzagged stripes on her wings, and down her the middle of her forehead. Her tail fins also got zigzagged stripes. Re got the Draconian crest painted on each wing and a blue spiral around each eye. Aurora go ice blue snowflakes all over her wings and around both eyes. Tenor got a white star around each eye, then Serenity put thousands of tiny white dots all over the underside of his wings so it looked the starry night sky. She also put his crest on his tail fins and the opposite sides of his wings. Soon they were all ready.

"We should head for the arena," Re said. "It's almost noon."

"I'll go down and find a seat," Serenity said, picking up her bag. Chris mounted Windwalker and they were about to take off when Aurora suddenly lost her balance and would have fallen over had she not caught herself with her wings. She was breathing heavily.

"You okay mom?" Chris asked worried. They all ran to her side, Serenity being the first.

"Strange, I feel tired all of a sudden," Aurora panted.

"Maybe you shouldn't race today," said Tenor. "If you're not feeling well."

"Oh nonsense," Aurora said, strength coming back to her. "I'm feeling better already." She got to her feet.

"You sure?" Serenity asked.

"Yes," said Aurora, she did sound like she was returning to normal.

"Okay," Serenity said. "If it happens again there's nothing wrong with forfeiting." She picked her bag back up, along with her folding char and headed for the plaza as her family headed for the arena. Serenity arrived in the plaza which was all excited about the upcoming race. She spotted the pen of sheep that the dragons would use to score points. She counted fifteen white sheep and one black sheep. They were penned next to the sheep launcher. At that moment Cloudjumper landed next to her.

"You not racing ma'am?" he asked.

"No," said Serenity. "I'd rather be the medical support. What about you and Valka?"

"She's going to be medical support too," Cloudjumper said. "She and that small witch will be the medical support for the humans."

"Small witch?" Serenity chuckled, knowing he was talking about Gothi. "You think she's a witch?"

"Looks like a witch, acts like witch," said Cloudjumper as they made their way onto the grand stands.

"I don't think Gothi likes me much," Serenity said. "I don't really know why." They arrived at the section of the stands where Valka and Gothi were sitting.

"Is your mate racing?" Cloudjumper asked.

"He is indeed," Serenity said. She set up her chair near the other two and put her bag next to her feet.

"That will be interesting," Cloudjumper said. "Two Night Furies and a half in this race."

"Yeah I know," Serenity said. "I just hope the Queen makes it. She almost fainted this morning, she seemed really tired."

"Is she ill?" Cloudjumper asked.

"I don't know, it only lasted a minuet and she said still wanted to race," Serenity said. Cloudjumper went over and sat net to his rider. Serenity sat in her chair and waited for the race to begin. At that moment Gobber came up to her.

"Hey, Serenity good to see you at the races," he said cheerfully.

"Yeah I can't wait," Serenity said.

"I wonder if I could ask you a favor?" Gobber asked. Serenity blinked, the only favor

anyone on Berk asked her for was dragon sitting.

"I have to referee the race and we need someone to operate the sheep launcher," Gobber explained. "Will you run it? Just this once, I'll show you how to run it."

"Alright," Serenity said. "I suppose I could make myself useful." She got up and gathered her things. She followed Gobber back down the steps of the stands. They went over to the sheep launcher, which already had a sheep in it. Gobber's Hotburple, Grump, was sleeping next to it.

"Right all you have to do is put the sheep into the basket there," Gobber explained. "Then pull that leaver. Everytime a sheep is launched you must put another one in right away, I'll wave at you when we are ready for the next sheep."

"Sounds easy," Serenity said. She set her chair next to the launcher, she made a mental note to herself to secretly use her own magic to get the sheep in place. Gobber mounted Grump and took off. He circled the plaza and wave in the direction of the horn blower to start the race. The viking blew the horn and the racers flew out of the arena and towards the plaza. Serenity spotted her family at once, the face paint did its job. Gobber waved at her and she pulled the leaver and the sheep was launched into the village. The racers homed in on it like sharks. It was quickly snatched by Toothless who gripped it tightly in hit paws. He raced through the course, hitting the weather vane as he passed. The Draconians began talking to each other in Dragontongue. Tenor circled Toothless, then he dived a foot in front of him. Toothless was so surprised that he dropped the sheep and it was snatched up by Aurora. She flew towards the dragon hanger as fast as her wings could carry her. Snotlout tried to steel the sheep but she saw him comming and did a fancy backflip to avoid the opponent as she entered the hanger. The other riders tried to get the sheep, but Aurora kept dodging them. When she got out of the hanger and headed for the apple tree Chris and Windwalker appeared underneath her. She dropped the sheep into her son's arms, he caught it and Windwalker sped off. They reached the plaza, the others sped after them. Windwalker sped up to the baskets and tossed the sheep into their baskets. The crowd roared. Gobber waved at Serenity and she launched the next sheep. Tenor followed it with his sharp eyes. He sped after it, and caught it before it hit the ground. He held it tightly in his talons. He didn't see Astrid and Stormfly pull up into his blind spot, right below him. But then the sheep chose that time to bleat and Tenor spotted the Nadder below him. He thrust his wings back and sped off. He soared over the docks. He soon saw Re right ahead of him. Tenor let out a bark alerting him that he was about to toss him the sheep. Re called back saying he was ready. But then Eret came out of no where and snatched the sheep right out of Tenor's talons. Tenor had paused for too long. Eret raced towards the hanger and the others followed. They all tried to steel the sheep but Eret dodged all of them. Then Chris saw him make eye contact with Fishlegs. Chris pulled up slightly behind Fishlegs, in a perfect position to intercept. But Eret spotted this and tossed the sheep to Tuffnut. Tuffnut caught the sheep, but then he and Ruffnut began fighting over it. Astrid did her usual trick where she jumped onto the Zippleback, snatched the sheep and landed back on Stormfly. They had already passed through the hanger and were heading towards the apple tree. Astrid threw the sheep to Hiccup, but Toothless inconveniently wobbled and hit the sheep with his wing. The sheep sailed up high, giving Chris and Windwalker the opportunity to snatch it. Windwalker caught the sheep in her talons and hugged it to her chest making it slightly harder for anyone to steel it. She flew into the plaza and dropped the sheep into the Draconians' basket.

The race went on with real intensity. Serenity launched sheep after sheep. She watched the dragons snatch them up and fly off with them. Though this was their first race the Draconians proved to be a tough opponent. They used very tricky maneuvers to intercept sheep and to avoid losing the sheep they had already. All the battle training they had gone through over the years played a big roll. The Berkians were able to get a few sheep into the other baskets, but the Draconians gained on them every time. They were so wrapped up in the race that time seemed to vanish. Then at long last Serenity loaded the black sheep into the launcher. The sheep that was in play currently was in Re's talons. Aurora corkscrewed around the Zippleback and Re tossed her the sheep. She managed to catch it before it was intercepted. She sped through the hanger the other racers hot on her tail. Tenor sped ahead of her and flew into the plaza. Aurora sped up, using her magic to give her a tail wind as she flew over the apple tree. She then glided into the plaza where Tenor circled. Aurora threw the sheep towards him and he hit with his tail. The sheep shot through the air and landed right into the Draconians' basket. The crowd roared. Gobber waved at the horn blower. He blew the foghorn, announcing the final lap. Then Gobber waved at Serenity and she launched the black sheep into play. The intensity increased as the racers flew even faster to try and get the sheep. Astrid beat them all and Stormfly clutched the valuable sheep in her talons. The animal bleated and struggled. But then it got aggressive and bit Stormfly's paw. It didn't break the skin but it did hurt Stormfly enough to make her drop the sheep. It fell a good several feet before being caught by Chris. He urged Windwalker to go as fast as she could towards the hanger. Windwalker could suddenly sense Toothless on her tail. She sped up and soared through the hanger. When she got outside again Chris saw both his parents ahead of him. Aurora was ahead of Re, and Chris decided to risk a pass.

"Dad heads up!" he called. Re looked over his left wing as his son threw him the black sheep. Re didn't catch it, instead he did a frontwards flip and hit the sheep with his tail. Aurora heard the sheep bleating in her direction. Thinking quickly she flipped upside down, caught the sheep in her back talons, and flipped upright again. She thrust her wings back and sped over the apple tree. The others urged their dragons after her. The sheep tried biting again, but the Dragon Queen only flinched and gripped the sheep tighter. She entered the plaza, the finish line in her sight. The crowd was dead silent, saving their voices for the big cheer. Aurora suddenly heard the whistle of a Night Fury gaining on her. Thinking quickly again Aurora put on one last burst of speed and slammed the sheep into the Draconians' basket, claiming victory. The crowd roared and the racers began to slow down. Aurora was about to do her victory lap when the exhaustion she felt that morning suddenly reared its ugly head again, only ten times worse. It took every last bit of strength she had to stay airborne. It was getting harder to keep her eyes open. She looped around looking for a place to land. She pumped her wings, desperately trying not crash. She didn't even notice that she was heading right for the great hall. Then Aurora could fight no more as every muscle in her body shut down. She smashed through the great hall doors, crashed on the floor, and the lights went out.


	2. Chapter 2

Everyone in the stands all watched in horror as the Dragon Queen crashed into the great hall. They all began running up to the great hall to see if she was okay. Hiccup and Toothless flew over to deal with the crowd while Re fetched Serenity. All the racers flew right into the room where the crowd was gathered at the very back. The racers landed at the very front of the crowd and dismounted. All the dragons were worried about their Queen. They found her lying on her side in a bed of splinters from the tables and benches she had smashed up. There were splinters in her wings, which were spread out at odd angles. Her eyes were closed and there was a look of pain and exhaustion on her face. They knew she wasn't dead because she was breathing heavily, puffs of smoke came out of her nostrils every few minuets. The crowd began muttering to each other. Then Re flew in with Serenity on his back. He landed next to his mate and Serenity jumped off. She set her bag down next to Aurora's head and began to examine her.

"Sorry about your great hall," Re said to Hiccup.

"That's alright Re," Hiccup said. "It was an accident." Re turned back to watching Serenity.

"Is she okay?" he asked her. Serenity looked at him.

"She's exhausted," she said. "Way more than usual."

"How can she be exhausted? Tenor asked. "She's only been flying for an hour."

"Well I find the answer to that after she gets out of here and up to my hospital," Serenity said. She leaned over Aurora's head and tried to rouse her. All that happened was Aurora's eyes fluttered open an inch before closing again.

"Wow, she's more exhausted than I thought," Serenity said, more to herself. She reached into her bag and pulled out a tiny bottle of bright green liquid. She made sure she was in a safe position, uncorked the bottle, and placed it next to one of Aurora's nostrils. In an instant she was wide awake, and jumped to her feet with a loud snarl. Serenity closed the bottle up very quickly. Aurora settled down. Re and Tenor were instantly at her side helping stay standing. Serenity got up as well.

"What is that stuff?" asked Hiccup.

"Dragonroot," Serenity said. "It helps get a dragon's adrenaline running, and rouses them when they pass out." The crowd parted so Re and Tenor could escort Aurora outside. Chris, Serenity, and Windwalker followed them outside, and towards the hospital. The vikings went to work cleaning up the dragon race decorations and equipment.

The hike to the hospital was long and slow. Aurora kept falling asleep and Serenity would use the Dragonroot to revive her again.

"Will she be okay?" Chris asked.

"I think so," said Serenity. "She didn't break anything luckily."

"At least we won," Tenor said, trying to be optimistic.

"Yeah you guys should do that more often," Serenity said. "And the dragons do look good in their racing stripes." They all snickered as they finally reached the hospital.

"Wait there," Serenity said to Re and Tenor. She opened the door to the house and pulled out an old sail. She spread it out on the snow, creating something for Aurora to lay down on.

"Okay," she said. Aurora walked onto the sail and collapsed onto it. Serenity opened her medical bag back up and pulled out her silver stethoscope. She used it to listened to Aurora's heartbeat. A look of confusion came across her face.

"What's wrong?" Re asked, but Serenity shushed him. She moved the stethoscope along Aurora's belly. At that moment Hiccup and the Dragon Riders came up, followed by their dragons.

"Is she okay?" Hiccup asked.

"We don't know yet," Chris said. They all watched Serenity as she continued her work. She placed the stethoscope on Aurora's abdomen and then she smiled a smile of relief and joy. She put the stethoscope away before saying her diagnosis.

"She's growing two eggs," she said happily.

"EGGS!" said everyone said in unison.

"Yes eggs," said Serenity. "That's why she's been so tired lately, growing these eggs takes a lot of her energy."

"When will she lay them?" Astrid asked.

"In a month," Serenity said. "Then it will be another two months before they hatch."

"So I guess going home is out of the question," Tenor said.

"Draconia is 24 hours away," said Serenity. "She can only fly for three, then the eggs will take up the rest of her energy to grow."

"How come you know that?" asked Fishlegs.

"I've dealt with females growing their first eggs," Serenity said. "Though this is the first time I've dealt with it alone." At that moment Aurora woke up and lifted her head.

"Is it true?" she asked Serenity. "About the eggs?"

"Yes ma'am," Serenity said softly. Aurora sighed.

"We should find a warmer place," she said weakly. "Berk gets too cold for eggs."

"What about that hatchery the dragons always migrate too," Hiccup suggested. "I've been there."

"So have I," Serenity said. "It's a bit small, and rather far."

"How far is it?" Re asked.

"200 hundred miles," Hiccup said. "It takes three hours to get there."

"Wow, that is rather far," said Aurora. "But I think I can make it."

"It's also very crowded," Hiccup said, remembering.

"More crowded than this place?" Aurora asked, amused.

"About the same," Hiccup said. "And if you don't want to fly all the way I have another idea."

"What?" Re asked.

"I have to show you," Hiccup said. He got on Toothless, the others got on their dragons. Chris got on Windwalker, and Serenity got on Tenor. Since Tenor and Windwalker were mates, and there riders were as well, Serenity decided to make Tenor her signature dragon. She sometimes rode Aurora or Re, but she rode Tenor the most often. Aurora heaved herself to her feet. They all took off and followed Hiccup down to the arena. As they headed down a lot of worries ran through Chris's head. He was of course excited that his mother was going to lay eggs, but that also meant he would soon be a big brother. He had never had siblings before, and he was worried that he wouldn't be good at it. He had read stories about the oldest son of a king and queen was always put in charge of his younger siblings, and they would misbehave all day claiming they didn't have to listen to the older brother because he wasn't their parents. As a result the older brother would get blamed for everything that went wrong, even though the younger siblings had caused it. In the end the parents had put so much blame on him that he no longer felt wanted. He ran away and was never seen again. The king and queen were devastated of course and the whole family fell apart, as did the nation they ran. Chris did not want that to happen, but was not sure if he could stop it.

At that moment they arrived at the arena. They landed in the spectators area and Hiccup led them to a very big shed at the back. Aurora wobbled a bit but stayed on her feet. Hiccup opened the shed and they saw what looked like the bow of an old ship. It had ropes tied to its railing.

"The dragons all helped carry their hatchlings from their hatching grounds back to Berk in this," Hiccup explained. "It happened the first Snoggletog after the defeat of the Red Death."

"We may have done the work but you came up with the idea," Hookfang said, and Serenity translated. Re looked the ship up and down.

"We could fly all the way home if we use that," said Tenor.

"I have never been to these hatching grounds," Aurora said. "And I don't want anyone carrying that for 24 hours, it looks very heavy."

"Alright," said Re. "How many dragons does it take to haul it?"

"Not very many," said Stormfly. "Our little group here should do the trick." Re turned to Hiccup.

"Thank you," he said humbly.

"Sure," Hiccup said. He and Re pulled the ship out of its shed. Toothless wormed his head under Serenity's hand. She giggled and petted him. When the ship was out Aurora went behind it. The inside of the ship was completely gutted and was the perfect size for her.

"Get in we'll take it back to the hospital," Re said. Aurora got into the ship and laid down. The riders got on their dragons and the dragons gripped the ropes in their talons and took off. They lifted the ship off the ground and headed back up to the hospital. Aurora thought the ride was comfortable and smooth, though she couldn't see much. The ride lasted a few minuets then it the ship landed at the hospital. The other dragons landed. Aurora got up and got off the ship.

"That was lovely," she said. "When does the migration start?"

"The dragons will start heading out the day after tomorrow," Hiccup said. "But some start early."

"I think we should head out tonight," Re said. "I want to see this place before the crowd gets there."

"We're going to be on this island for three months?" Chris asked. "That's quite a long time."

"But when we do get home the we will be bringing a big surprise for the dragons," Re said. "And the country can run itself for that long, they've done it before."

"Toothless and I will come by once in a while to see the progress of the eggs," Hiccup said.

"Very well, we should get ready," said Aurora. The Riders of Berk all went home with their dragons. The Draconians prepared for the long flight. Serenity put her camping gear on Tenor's saddle. Chris put the sail into the ship so his mother would be more comfortable.

Soon they were all ready. The Berkian dragons came up to the hospital after bidding their riders good bye. Chris mounted Windwalker, Serenity mounted Tenor, and Aurora got back onto the airship. The dragons grabbed the ropes and lifted the airship up up and away, Aurora used her magic to make the ship as light as possible.

"Did you bring Dragon Slippers?" Chris asked Serenity. She reached into the saddlebags and pulled out said book.

"I figured it would come in handy," she said. "Though I might have to start over for these other dragons."

"Good idea," said Re. "They'll love it."

"I can only read for as long as I have the light to do so," Serenity said. With that she opened the book to the first page and read it aloud to everyone. Though the book was written in latin, she read it in Dragontongue so they all could understand it. They flew on in silence listening to the story. The sun began to set as they lost sight of Berk.


	3. Chapter 3

An hour before they reached the Hatchery the sun set all the way. Serenity ran out of light for reading. She marked her place in the book and put it away.

"I can see why you guys like this story," said Stormfly.

"Yeah, and I brought the two books that come after it," said Serenity. "I reckon it would be a long three months without them." Then she spotted the nervous look on Chris's face.

"Is there something wrong Chris?" she asked him. He looked at her. He could have told her he was just fine but she was much too smart for that.  
>"I'll tell you later," he said, hoping that would put her mind at ease. Serenity let it slide for now as they neared the island.<p>

An hour later the island came into view. It was deserted for the moment, but would be filled up in a little while. The dragons began their decent towards the large plateau at the head of the island. The spring in the center glittered in the moonlight. The airship soon landed at the base of the plateau and the dragons landed themselves. Aurora got to her feet and got off the ship. They looked around the place.

"Wow it's beautiful," said Aurora.

"It's not much but it's just as much home as Berk is," said Hookfang.

"Is that water safe enough for swimming?" asked Re, pointing at the spring.

"Oh, absolutely," said Meatlug. "However, it's too hot for human skin." She looked at Serenity and Chris.

"That's okay," said Serenity. "We should set up camp anyway."

"I'll join you," said Aurora. "I'm not up to swimming at the moment." While the others went into the spring; Aurora, Serenity, and Chris explored the island. The looked for a comfertable place to set up came and for Aurora to lay down. They went up to the top of the plateau.

"This will do," said Aurora. "Nice and high."

"Not much shelter though," said Chris. "And the ground is hard rock." Aurora smiled and ran her talons over the stony ground, and Dragonnip appeared. Then she used her magic again to make a shelter out of stone, wood, and moss. It was big enough for her, Re, and the hatchlings when they came. Chris and Serenity put up their tent and put their sleeping bags inside it. The Dragonnip was so thick and so soft that pads weren't needed. Serenity went back down to the airship and got the sail out of it. She brought back to the camp and put it over the tent, using it for a tarp. Chris dug a huge fire pit. Aurora used her magic again to fill it with firewood and lit it with her blue fire. At that moment the others came up, dripping wet. Aurora laid down in the shelter she made, feeling exhausted again. Re laid beside her and the others sat around the fire. Aurora used her magic once more to make camp chairs for Serenity and Chris.

"What would happen if you told the vikings that you have magic?" asked Stormfly.

"I don't know," said Aurora. "That what worries me, and what worries Father. Hiccup may be a peaceful individual, how do I know he won't be pressured by his village, in dire circumstances, to use my magic as a weapon. I remember what happened in the Battle of the Bewilderbeast, when the Grey Alpha was forced to use his magic to possess an innocent young dragon and make him kill a good man." She shuddered at the memory. She hadn't seen this happen at the time, but she knew it had happened all the same.

"That seems logical," said Meatlug. "Do have that same power?"

"Yes I do," Aurora said. "But I don't use it, that would make me a bad queen."

"You think one of your new hatchlings will have magic?" asked Barf, transitioning into the subject of the hatchlings.

"Most likely," said Aurora. "It does run in the blood, maybe they'll both have it."

"Which one will be the new ruler?" asked Windwalker.

"The girl," said Aurora. "I can foresee that one will be a girl and one will be a boy. The girl will grow to be the new queen and she will get to pick her mate that will become the new King."

"What are you going to call them?" asked Serenity.

"No idea," said Aurora. "I will until I see them in person before I make that decision." She rolled onto her side so she wouldn't crush her eggs.

"We should let you get some rest," said Hookfang. "We'll be back tomorrow."

"Alright," said Aurora. "And please don't overdue the service thing, I'm not the Red Death."

"Okay," said Hookfang with a chuckle. He and the others flew off to look for a place to sleep. They settled in the same spot they used every time they came here.

"It's a shame Toothless couldn't come," said Stormfly. "I hope he'll be able to start a family of his own."

"Yeah," said Belch. "And if he starts one soon maybe one of his kids will become the new King. It would be way cool to have a Night Fury on the throne."

"That would be cool," said Meatlug. "But that's up to the young Princess, and Lord Draco too I suppose."

"And plus we already have a Night Fury for an Alpha," said Hookfang. "I think that's good enough." They all murmured in agreement. Then they settled down and fell asleep. Up on the plateau the Draconians had fallen asleep as well. Serenity to told Aurora to wake her up if there was any problems. Aurora had no problem falling asleep. Tenor and Windwalker went fishing, since they were both nocturnal.

(Chris's dream)

Chris dreamed that he was back at the Draconian Castle. Before him he saw his two siblings running around his parents' room. It was rainning outside and he was in charge of them. His parents were out getting food and Serenity was at the Bluegreen Hospital working a Night Fury shift. Chis was all on his own. At first the two young dragons kept out of trouble. But then they ran out of the room chasing each other. Chris went after them but couldn't find them anywhere in the castle. He looked everywhere, even outside. The rain turned into a fierce storm. Chris started to panic as it grew closer to the time his parents got home. He dreaded having to look his father in the eye and say that he'd lost his siblings. He tried calling their names, but couldn't remember what their names were. At that moment Windwalker came running up to him.

"Have you seen my siblings?" he asked her.

"No I haven't," Windwalker said. "Where did you last see them?"

"In my parent's room," said Chris. "But they ran out and I've searched the castle without finding them. I'm in such big trouble, my parents are coming home any minuet. What am I going to do?"

"Don't worry we'll find them," said Windwalker. "Come on." They looked all over the castle. But the two hatchlings were nowhere to be found. Chris looked out one of the windows and saw his parents flying over the lagoon towards the castle.

"I'm doomed," he said. He then opened the window, mounted Windwalker, and took off into the storm. The wind blew them miles from land. Almost at once Chris regretted running away. His parents would be devastated when they found out, and Serenity would be destroyed. He turned Windwalker around and headed back to shore. But the wind was so violent that flying in a strait line was impossible. Suddenly a lighting bolt cut right in front of Windwalker followed by the loudest crack of thunder in the world...

(end dream)

Chris woke up still in the tent. It was still raining out and the wind blew against the tent making it rattle. Chris sat up still troubled by the nightmare. At that moment Serenity woke up as well, most likely roused by the storm.

"Can't sleep either?" she whispered.

"No, nightmare," Chris said simply.

"Oh you okay?" she asked softly.

"Yeah, I'm just glad it's over," Chris said. Serenity put a hand on his shoulder.

"What was it about?" she asked.

"Can't remember anymore," Chris lied. Serenity seemed to buy it. "I wonder how mom's doing."

"She's okay," said Serenity. "I checked on her just before it started raining. And Tenor and Windwalker are still out, it's too stormy for them to land."  
>"Too stormy to do anything," Chris said. Serenity murmured in agreement.<p>

They soon started to get sleepy again and went back to sleep. Chris's head was still buzzing with the nightmare. He wanted to tell his parents his worries, but he didn't want to hurt their feelings. They were really looking forward to hatching these eggs and he didn't want to kill their happiness by telling them he was dreading it. So he decided to keep it to himself, for now. He soon fell asleep hoping he wouldn't have another nightmare.

The next morning Chris woke up to bright daylight and voices coming from outside. He sat up to find Serenity's sleeping bag empty. He grabbed his coat, put it on, and went outside. Tenor and Windwalker were curled up together in the Dragonnip fast asleep, but everyone else was awake. Aurora was still laying down but looked up when her son came out.

"Good morning Chris," she said.

"Hi," Chris said, sleepily. He sat in his chair next to Serenity. The rain had washed off all of the dragons' face paint. With the excitement about the eggs, they had completely forgotten that they were still painted.

"You have anymore nightmares?" Serenity asked Chris.

"No, luckily," said Chris.

"Nightmare?" said Re.

"Yeah I had a nightmare last night," Chris said. "No thanks to that storm."

"You want to talk about it?" asked Aurora. "That usually helps."

"I can't remember what it was," Chris lied again. "All I remember was that it was raining there too."

"Okay," said Aurora. "Let us know if it happens again."

"I will," Chris promised.

And it did happen again. The following night he had the very same nightmare. The only thing that was different was the hatchlings were a different color, because no one knew what colors they were going to be. Again he just couldn't look his parents in the eye and tell them he'd lost their hatchlings and again he got on Windwalker and took off into the storm. He would wake up just before the two of them crashed into the sea. He sat up drenched in cold sweat. He carefully got out of bed so he didn't wake Serenity. He left the tent and sat in his chair, he didn't feel like going back to sleep. He looked over at his parents who were both sound asleep. Aurora kept wincing every few seconds. Chris looked up at the stars and tried to find all the constellations to get his mind of his troubles. He didn't know what to do. He wanted to tell his parents but was afraid of hurting their feelings, but if kept it quiet it would only get worse. He felt caught between a rock and a hard place.

He sat there for hours until the sun came up and Tenor and Windwalker came back from fishing. Serenity came out of the tent and sat in her chair.

"How long have you been up?" she asked Chris.

"A few minuets," he lied. Tenor and Windwalker curled up on the Dragonnip and went right to sleep.

"The other dragons are arriving today," Serenity said as the King and Queen woke up.

"How many?" Chris asked.

"Hundreds," said Serenity. "Soon Aurora won't be the only ones with eggs."

"Good, I don't want to be alone in this," Aurora groaned. "Oh, why am I so sore?"

"It's from your crash," Serenity said. "You hit the ground pretty hard and it gave you several huge bruises."

"Oh, that makes sense," said Aurora. Serenity got up and went over to her. She reached into her medical bag and pulled out painkillers and a oral syringe. She filled the syringe.

"You've never been a midwife to a dragon before?" Aurora asked.

"No," said Serenity. "At least never by myself." The Queen nuzzled her.

"You're doing a great job," she said.

"Thanks," said Serenity. She gave Aurora the painkillers then put her things away. Aurora felt the medicine working, she didn't feel sore anymore. Serenity sat back in her chair. Re lit the fire pit and got to his feet.

"We should go fishing," he told his mate. "You could use the exercise."

"Good idea," said Aurora. She slowly got her feet and stretched all her muscles, which felt camped up after laying down for so long.

"You two going to be okay here for a while?" she asked her son and daughter-in-law.

"We'll be fine," said Serenity.

"Yeah we can watch the other dragons come in and find there spots," Chris said. Re and Aurora spread their wings and flew over the ocean. Aurora's wings felt stiff since she hadn't used them since the race. She flew along side Re and they began looking for fish. They didn't go too far from the island, incase Aurora needed to rest again. They always kept it in their sight. As they fished they saw dragons flocking towards the island, all talking happily. They greeted the King and Queen as they passed. The dragons landed all over the island and found spots for their eggs. The dragons from Berk were among them. Hookfang as his friends stayed where they were so their spot weren't taken. They all found their mates that they only saw around this time of year. Lord Draco had already planted eggs inside all the females.

As the day went on Aurora and Re kept on fishing until Aurora began to feel tired again. They went back to their spot and Aurora laid down again. They all watched the activity below the plateau. Dragons came and went, taking turns catching fish. Once in a while one or two dragons would come up to congratulate the Queen.

The sun was starting to set and the dragons were starting to quiet down. Hookfang and his friends came up onto the plateau.

"Hello everyone," said Serenity.

"Hi, we thought we'd check up on our Queen," said Stormfly. "Since we're all going to be here a while."

"That's quite neighborly," said Aurora. She rolled onto the side and made herself comfortable. The others sat in a circle and Re lit the fire pit again.

"So you're going to be a big brother," Meatlug said to Chris. "That must be exciting."

"Sure," Chis said. "It's never happened before. Hey I heard Fishlegs tried to keep you from coming here one year."

"Yeah, it was a bit selfish of him," Meatlug said. "But luckily it was a one time thing."

"How long were you locked up?" Serenity asked.

"Three days," said Meatlug. "I was so happy when Hiccup let me out. I kind felt bad about kidnapping him though." Serenity and Chris moved from their chairs and sat on the Dragonnip so they were on the same level as the dragons. The sun had set completely. The only light came from the waning moon and the camp fire.

"Does anyone know in scary stories?" asked Belch. "I could do with a scare right now."

"But you dragons don't scare very easily," said Chris.

"True," said Hookfang. "But that doesn't mean we don't get scared at all."

"What exactly are you guys afraid of?" Serenity asked. "Besides eels."

"Well for a while I was afraid of dragons like them," said Hookfang, gesturing to Tenor and Windwalker, who were starting to wake up and joined them at the campfire.

"Because like you humans," Hookfang continued. "I am afraid of what I don't see." The other dragons murmured in agreement.

"What are you afraid of Serenity?" asked Belch. "If you don't mind me asking."

"Wolves," Serenity said. "I'm terrified of wolves."

"Wolves?" said Hookfang. "Why wolves?" Serenity suddenly scared.

"This is may not be a scary story to you," she said. "There aren't any ghosts or anything."

"Tell us anyway," said Meatlug. Serenity took a deep breath and shifted closer to Chris.

"You don't have to if you don't want to," said Aurora. "I know it's not a pleasant memory."

"That's okay," said Serenity. "This happened when I was nine, almost ten years old. We went on a family camping trip in a land far to the west of here that the humans haven't discovered yet. The weather was so warm that we didn't bother bringing out the tent and sleeping bags. Chris and I slept under the stars with the dragons. Just before we fell asleep I heard the howling of wolves nearby. I thought they would leave us alone, since no animal would dare anger three dragons. I fell asleep shortly after the wolves stopped howling, thinking that they went away. Next thing I knew I heard a lot of panting, sniffing, and growling. I felt something clawing me and biting me. I woke up and saw about fifteen wolves surrounding me. I screamed thinking that it would scare them off, but it only made them attack me. It was rather painful, I thought for sure they were going to kill me. But I somehow managed to fight my way free. I ran as fast as I could. I was bleeding heavily from my head, arms, legs, and chest and it made me very dizzy. I didn't know where I was or what direction the dragons were. I called for them as loudly as I could. I suddenly heard the wolves running after me, they were determined to get me back. I had no idea how they had gotten me so far from the campsite without me noticing. I was completely lost in the woods. I didn't have my shoes on, I guess they fell off while they were dragging me, so it was quite painful to run through the woods. But I didn't dare stop when I heard the wolves gaining on me. I prayed as hard as I could to Lord Draco to get me out of this nightmare. I was getting weaker due to blood loss but I kept running. I reached a large clearing with soft grass, and that's where the wolves caught up with me. They quickly surrounded me on all sides, cutting off my escape routes. They circled me like vultures gnashing their teeth and snarling. Then one of them, I guess he was the Alpha, pounced on me and knocked me over. The others were quick to pin me down, keeping me from escaping again. I had hit my head when I hit the ground and got a mild concussion. I was cognizant, but just barely. They started biting me again. But then I heard the wonderful sound of a dragon's roar. They had come to my rescue just in time. The wolves ran off and the dragons rushed over to me. I finally blacked out from exhaustion and blood loss. I woke up three weeks later in my own bed in the castle, all bandaged up." Serenity seemed to relax a bit as the story came to an end.

"Wow, you were only nine?" said Stormfly, amazed.

"Yeah," Serenity said. "And it still gives me nightmares. Every time I hear the howling of wolves I can't go to sleep. What scares me about them is that they were able to get passed sleeping dragons. I don't know how they did it, but if they can do that then nowhere is safe from wolves."

"How did you find her?" Hookfang asked Re.

"We heard her cry out," Re said. "Followed by the growling of the wolves. I had no idea the wolves had been through our camp, until I heard Serenity screaming. It was feint, but it was still out enough to wake me up. They hadn't dragged her that far, but when she escaped she had run off in the wrong direction."

"So that's why I'm scared of wolves," Serenity said, wrapping it all up. Chris held her hand, which helped calm her down a great deal.

"There are no wolves here," said Hookfang,

"Luckily yeah," Serenity agreed. "Nor are there any on Berk. I don't hate wolves I just don't want them any where near me." The fire was starting to die down but Re didn't light it. The Berkian dragons returned to their nests. Tenor and Windwalker went out for their round of fishing. Re and Aurora fell asleep, Re draped his wing over Aurora. Chris and Serenity went back into their tent and fell asleep as well.


	4. Chapter 4

The days went by a steady pace. Aurora's abdomen bulged as the eggs grew bigger inside her. The more they grew the more of her energy they took. Aurora spent less time out at sea and more time resting. Serenity stayed by her side checking on the eggs every once in a while. Everything was fine, though Aurora wasn't comfortable. The eggs were putting pressure on her back bone. It hurt her to walk around or even sit up. She laid on her side all day and all night. Serenity gave her painkillers every night to help her sleep better. Serenity did everything she could, but Aurora was still suffering from the pressure.

Chris was suffering as well. Every night he had the same nightmare, and they kept getting worse. He saw his parent's sad faces when they found that their two hatchlings were missing and so was their eldest son. He also saw Serenity moping around the castle in tears. Chris also had nightmares about the hatchlings completely destroying the castle then telling Re and Aurora that Chris had done it. The King and Queen got so mad at him that they told him to leave the castle and never return. He again got on Windwalker and flew as far from Draconia as he could. And he would see the images of his parents' sad faces and Serenity completely destroyed. Chris had a third nightmare about telling Re and Aurora about being nervous about being a big brother, then he watched in horror as Aurora smashed her eggs out of hurt feelings just to make him feel better. The bigger the eggs grew the more intense the nightmares became. Chris would wake up after the first nightmare, them be afraid to go back to sleep incase he had the other two. He would leave the tent and sit in his chair for the rest of the night.

The nightmares soon got so bad that he just wouldn't sleep at all. He would sit his chair the whole night, instead of for half of it. It started to effect him in daylight hours. He rarely talked to anyone and went for walks around the island. Serenity was starting to get worried; both about her husband and about her mother-in-law. Re, Tenor, and Windwalker helped in anyway they could. All over the island eggs were being laid. Serenity watched from the plateau as the other females attended to their eggs.

"When will this end?" Aurora moaned one night. Her abdomen had grown into the size of a sack of potatoes.

"Soon," said Serenity. "You'll be laying them any day now, after that your body will go back to normal." Aurora sighed, wincing.

"I wish I could do more for you," Serenity said.

"You're doing a great job," the Queen said. "I know you're doing your best. Besides I think Chris needs you more." At that moment Re came over after stretching his legs.

"Chris just took off on Windwalker," he said. "You should check on him." Serenity got to her feet and looked at him.

"Which direction did he go?" she asked.

"Back in the direction of Berk," Re said. Serenity looked at Aurora.

"Think you can manage without me?" she asked.

"I'm pretty sure I can," Aurora said. "I'll use my magic to contact you if something happens." Serenity left the shelter and went over to Tenor.

"Can you track down Windwalker?" she asked him.

"She can't hide from me," Tenor said cheerfully. "I can find her." Serenity mounted him and took off. Tenor flew in the direction he saw Windwalker go, using his special sonar to find her in the dark. Luckily they hadn't gone very far. Chris and Windwalker had flown to the nearest sea stack and landed. Tenor landed on the sea stack next to his mate. Chris was standing on the edge looking at the sea. Serenity dismounted and walked up to him. He didn't look at her as she approached. Serenity stood next to him and took his hand in hers.

"What's wrong Chris?" she asked gently. "You haven't been yourself lately." Chris took a deep breath. He knew he wouldn't be able to hide his troubles from her, she was worried enough already with her job.

"I'm very nervous about being a big brother," he said. "I've been having nightmares about failing at it, and I don't want to let my parents down."

"Oh, is that what this is all about?" Serenity said. Chris nodded.

"I don't know what to do," he said.

"What part of being a big brother are you nervous about?" Serenity asked.

"That Mom and Dad go off hunting and leave me in charge of my siblings," Chris explained. "And that they won't listen to me because I'm not their parent and misbehave. I'm going to be responsible for everything they do and that my parents will be really disappointed in me."

"I can see why that would make you nervous," Serenity said. "But I can't see why you had to keep that to yourself."

"I didn't know how to say it without sounding like I didn't want the eggs to come," Chris said.

"I see," said Serenity.

"You were very brave to tell that story about the wolves," Chris continued. "It must have been hard for you."

"But it did get easier after I told it," Serenity said. "I haven't had a single nightmare about the wolves since I told it. You'll feel the same if you tell your parents how you feel. And about your worries about being a big brother, they're just an illusion, they'll go away once your siblings hatch out."

"You sure?" Chris asked, finally looking at her.

"Yes," said Serenity. "And we can all help you if tell us how." Chris took another deep breath and turned to face her. She gave him a big hug, and he hugged her back.

"It'll be okay Chris," she said, in her honey sweet voice. "You won't have to go through this alone." They pulled out of the hug, a bit reluctantly.

"Excuse me," said Windwalker. "I don't mean to butt in here, but you should see this." Chris and Serenity turned to her and Tenor. They were looking in the direction of the island, which was a back spot on the horizon. Over the island were blue aurora lights.

"What's going on over there?" Chris asked.

"I need to go," Serenity said suddenly, knowing what the lights meant. "Aurora's about to lay her eggs."

"You go ahead, I'll catch up later," Chris said.

"Okay don't be long," Serenity said. She kissed him on the cheek then mounted Tenor. They took off into the night sky, heading for the island. Chris and Windwalker watched her go.

"I was quite a remarkable story with her in the wolves," Windwalker said.

"She almost died that night," Chris said. "She lost so much blood that the Healer Dragons were 100% sure she wasn't going to make it. They didn't have any human blood to replace the blood she lost."

"How did they save her?" Windwalker asked.

"They replaced her blood with dragon's blood," Chris said. "It was their last resort. And it worked."

"Dragon's blood!?" said Windwalker.

"Yeah, she now has dragon's blood in her veins," said Chris.

"Which dragon?" Windwalker asked.

"Dad," said Chris.

"Wow," said Windwalker. "So that makes her part dragon."

"Yup," said Chris. "She has the same strengths and weaknesses as dragons. She can't breathe fire or fly, but she can withstand extreme temperatures. She's also allergic to eels."

"Let's go see your mother's eggs," Windwalker suggested.

"Okay," said Chris, he was still nervous. He mounted his dragon and flew back to the island.

When they got there they saw the campfire blazing. Serenity and Re were in the shelter with Aurora. Tenor was outside.

"What's going on?" Windwalker asked her mate.

"Aurora just laid her first egg," Tenor said. "The other one is coming, Serenity says wait out here until she says it's okay to go in." The three of them sat around the campfire and waited for news. They didn't have to wait long. In only a few minuets Serenity came out looking tired but happy.

"You three can come in now," she said. Chris, Tenor, and Windwalker got up and went into the shelter. Re was laying beside Aurora who was sitting up. She looked exhausted but not in pain. She lifted her left wing, and there nestled next to her belly, were two round eggs. They were slightly larger than Gronkle eggs and completely round. They were a light tan color. Aurora nuzzled them.

"Wow," said Windwalker. "How are you doing Aurora?"

"I'm so glad that's over," the Queen huffed out. She yawned and covered her eggs with her wings again.

"We'll let you rest now," said Tenor. They all left except for Re. Tenor and Windwalker left for fishing and Serenity and Chris went into their tent and fell asleep.

That night Chris had a different nightmare that night, and it had nothing to do with the eggs. He was nine years old and sleeping next to his mom deep in the woods. Suddenly he heard a girl screaming. He and the dragons woke up and got to their feet. They quickly discovered that Serenity was missing.

"Where is she?" Chris asked, close to tears. "We have to find her Dad."

"Get on," Re said kneeling down. Chris got on his back and he stood up. The three dragons took off and flew in the direction the scream had come from. They flew low over the trees. Suddenly they saw Serenity running for her life through the woods, from a huge pack of wolves.

"There she is Dad," Chris said, pointing her out. "We can fly down and get her."

"No we can't," said Aurora. "The trees are too dense."

"You're just going to leave her down there?" Chris asked.

"Don't worry son," said Re. "We aren't going to abandon her. Look she's heading for that clearing we'll rescue her there." The three dragons followed Serenity from the air all the way to the clearing. She got there before they did. The wolves cut her off and slowly advanced on her. The biggest wolf pounced on her and pinned her down, followed by his pack.

"Dad hurry, they're going to kill her," Chris cried out. Re looked over his wing at his son.

"We'll fight them off, I want you stay were you are until I say," he ordered. Chris nodded. The three dragons swooped down and fought the wolves back. They scattered revealing Serenity laying on the ground covered in blood, unconscious. The dragons landed and Chris got off. He ran to her side. Re came up beside her as well. Serenity was almost unrecognizable, her whole body was soaked in blood. She looked like something out of a horror story. Suddenly the scene changed to show a room at the Bluegreen Hospital. Serenity was laying on a cot with the blankets covering her, still unconscious. Re, Aurora, and Tenor were around her bed and Chris was sitting on a chair right near her head. She had bandages on her arms and around her head. At that moment one of the Healer Dragons came in and started talking to the King and Queen. Chris only heard bits and pieces of the conversation as all of his attention was on her friend. He did hear when the Healer said that Serenity was as good as dead because she had lost too much blood. Chris burst into tears and his mom draped a wing over his shoulder.

"Please wake up Serenity," he sobbed. "Can't you use your magic Mom?"

"I can't raise the dead sweetie you know that," said Aurora. "But maybe Father can do something." She called Lord Draco into the room.

"Draco Serenity is hurt and she's going to die," Chris said, still upset. "Can you save her?" Draco looked at him with his golden eyes.

"I am sorry," he said. "I can only do that for Dragons, and she is a human. Her life is not in my hands. What I can do is this." He went over to Serenity and lowered his head over hers and let out a deep breath. Her eyes opened and she took a huge breath. She sat up and looked around.

"Serenity you're okay," Chris said overjoyed.

"She will stay awake for ten minuets," Draco said. "Then I will take her with me to the Dragon's Heaven."

"Oh," said Chris, sad again. Serenity smiled at him.

"It's okay Chris," she said gently. "I will be with Ruby, I've missed him so much."

"But I'll really miss you," Chris said.

"I'll miss you too," Serenity admitted. "But that doesn't mean I don't love you." She gripped his hand in her bandaged one. She laid back down on her pillow, she looked sleepy.

"What I'm I going to do without you?" Chris whispered.

"Remember me," Serenity said very quietly. Then she sat up briefly and kissed him on the mouth, the first time she'd ever done that. Aurora and the other dragons moved closer and Aurora put her wing around Chris's shoulder's again.

"It's okay Serenity," she said. "You can sleep now."

"But my ten minuets are not yet up," Serenity protested. "Can I be alone with Chris, just for a few minuets?"

"Sure," said Re. The dragons left the room, including the Healer and Draco. Serenity scooted over on the cot so Chris could lie down next to her.

"I heard Ruby died with you in his arms," Chris said.

"Yes," said Serenity. "In this very hospital, different room though. We fell asleep together that night, only I woke up the next morning and he did not." Chris noticed that her eyes were getting heavy.

"I wish you didn't have to go," he told her.

"So do I," Serenity said. "I only have five minuets left." She gripped his hand tighter. Chris could see tears run down her bloodstained face. Suddenly he felt sleepy himself. The dragons came back in when she only had two minuets left. They were all quiet as they watched her fall asleep. And just like that she was gone.

Chris woke up in the tent again. It was still dark out and the wind howled. He sat up and looked over at Serenity. He was relieved to fined her alive and sleeping peacefully. He remembered how he'd almost lost her that night in the woods. It was one of the scariest moments of his life. He laid back down, feeling better about the nightmare. He fell asleep and unfortunately was greeted by his usual nightmares. They were beyond intense by now. They scared him out of telling his parents his worries when he had the nightmare about his mother smashing her eggs to make him feel better, and all the dragons looking at him with pure shame. He could hear Re shouting at him making him see what he made Aurora do. This forced Chris to remain silent so he wouldn't hurt anyone's feelings.

The next morning Chris was up before Serenity. He went out, it was daybreak and no one was up yet, nor was Tenor and Windwalker back from sea. Chris sat in his chair and watch dragons below who were early risers as well. He looked up and could barely make out the constellation Draco in the dying light.

"How do I make these nightmares stop?" he called to the heavens. "How do I do it without hurting anyone's feelings?" The stars glittered down at him. Then Serenity came out of the tent and sat in her chair.

"Still having nightmares?" she asked.

"Yeah," Chris confessed. "About that night with you and the wolves. Only you didn't survive."

"Oh, so that's where my nightmares went," said Serenity, she sounded guilty. "Sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry for," Chris said. Serenity held his hand and he squeezed in gently. He then began telling her about the other nightmare, and she listened quietly. She seemed concerned when he finished.

"I don't know what to do," Chris said. "I don't want my dad disappointed in me."

"If he will be disappointed, it will be because you didn't tell him about this sooner," Serenity said. "Do you plan to tell him soon?"

"Yes, but not yet," Chris said.

"Well when ever you're ready," Serenity said.

The sun came up all the way and Tenor and Windwalker returned from the sea. Aurora and Re woke up. Aurora checked her eggs. They were both fine. Serenity checked the heard beat of each unhatched dragon. Once that was done Aurora got to her feet saying she wanted to stretch her wings. So Re laid beside the eggs and Aurora went fishing. While she was away the riders' dragons came up for a visit. They were all excited about the eggs. Chris was more nervous than excited. He got up from his chair, saying he was going to go for a walk. Re watched him go feeling quite concerned. He then turned to Serenity.

"Is there something bothering him?" he asked. "He doesn't look too excited about the eggs."

"He plans to tell you himself," Serenity said. "But he doesn't want to hurt your feelings." Re furrowed his brow.

"Really?" he said. "Why this excuse?"

"I will let him tell you," Serenity said. "I hoped he does soon, I'm really worried about him." At that moment there came loud roars coming from the sky, it sounded like a dragon in pain. They all looked in the direction the noise was coming from. They say a Night Fury heading towards the island, his flight pattern was all lopsided. The dragon soon crashed onto the shore and let out a huge roar of pain.

"Oh dear," said Serenity. "It looks like Toothless hurt his wing."

"I'll take you down there," Re said getting to his feet. "Will you guys watch these eggs?"

"Yes sir," said all the dragons at once. Serenity grabbed her bag and mounted the King. They flew down to where Hiccup was crouched over his wounded dragon. Re landed and Serenity dismounted.

"What happened?" Serenity asked.

"We were flying through fog, and he clipped his wing on a sea stack," Hiccup said. "I think it's broken."

"Wasn't he using his sonar?" Re asked as Serenity knelt beside Toothless.

"He was and his first blast picked up one sea stack," Hiccup explained. "He dodged it so fast that he smashed into another one." Serenity examined Toothless's damaged right wing. It was really heated up. She found the breaks easily.

"Well?" Hiccup asked impatiently.

"It's a miracle he made here," Serenity said. "This wing is very broken, in three places."

"The other riders are coming in a boat," Hiccup said.

"When will they arrive?" Re asked.

"Any minuet," said Hiccup. They looked out at the horizon, seeing the blanket of fog.

"They're going to have a hard time getting through that," Re said.

"Yeah I was supposed to lead them through it when we crashed," Hiccup said.

"I'll do it if you want," Re offered.

"Sure thanks," said Hiccup. Re spread his wings and took off while Hiccup and Serenity helped get Toothless to the top of the plateau.


	5. Chapter 5

Re flew through the fog looking for the ship. He soon found it about to hit a rock. He swooped down and pushed it back on course. Then he landed on the deck.

"Hello," he said as he folded his wings. "Looks like you could use a wing."

"Where's Hiccup?" asked Astrid.

"Toothless broke his wing so they had to come strait to the island so Serenity could fix him," Re said.

"Is he okay?" asked Valka.

"Sure," Re said. "Now how about we get you to the island?"

"I can get us through fog," Gobber bragged. "Thanks for your offer but it's not needed." Re looked surprised.

"Okay then," he said causally. "See you all on the island." He opened his wings back up and took off. He didn't go far though. He knew vikings were too arrogant for their own good. He figured he would be needed eventually. Sure enough only five minuets later the ship got stuck on a rock that came right out of the fog. Re landed on the deck again.

"You know there's nothing wrong with admitting you need help," he said.

"Vikings never admit to anything," said Snotlout. Re rolled his eyes.

"But we could use help getting through the fog," said Astrid. Re took off and Fishlegs threw him a mooring line which he caught in his back talons. He flew though the fog towing the ship behind him, making sure it didn't hit anything.

It took an hour for him to get the ship out of the fog and into the warm waters around the island. Once it was out in the open Re let go of the rope and landed on the deck again.

"How's Aurora?" asked Astrid.

"She's better," Re said. "She laid her eggs last night."

"Really?" they all said in unison.

"Yes," Re said. "And I should probably get back to her. See you all later." He spread his wings and took off. He flew back to the plateau and landed on the Dragonnip. Serenity was fixing Toothless's wing while Hiccup sat in Chris's vacant chair. Aurora had returned and was sitting next to her eggs. The riders' dragons had returned to their spots.

"How is everyone?" Re asked as he folded his wings.

"Did the ship get through?" Hiccup asked.

"Yes, it's on its way," Re said. He turned towards the horizon where they could see the ship heading for the shore.

"Thanks Re," Hiccup said. He got up and went down to meet the ship. Re laid down beside Aurora. Toothless watched as Serenity finished fixing up his wing.

"You know every time I watch you work, I compare you to the human healer on Berk," he said.

"Really?" said Serenity as she put a splint on his wing.

"Yeah you're much friendlier than her," Toothless said. "When every she has to examine Hiccup for a wound or an injury she always shoves me out the door like I was garbage."

"Well make no mistake I do have folks leave the room as well," Serenity said. "I fact I did that last night."

"But you don't do it as often," Toothless said. "And when you do, you always ask nicely. The human healer never says a word she just pushes everyone out."

"Rude," Serenity said. She very carefully put Toothless's wing into a sling so it wasn't dragging on the ground.

"How does that feel?" she asked.

"It's a little better," Toothless said. "But I guess I won't be flying for a while."

"It'll be okay," Serenity said. "Dragons heal fast, you'll be back in the air before you know it. In the meantime why don't you come see the Queen's new eggs." She put her things away and stood up. Toothless got to his feet, Serenity had given him anesthetics so his wing didn't hurt. He went over to where the King and Queen lay.

"How are your eggs Aurora?" he asked. Aurora lifted her wing to show him her eggs.

"How's your wing?" she asked him.

"All patched up," he said.

"Is Chris not back yet?" Serenity asked.

"No, he's still walking around," said Aurora.

"I'll go join him," Serenity said. "I bet he could company right now." She put her bag beside the tent and went down the hill. She looked all over the island looking for Chris. She found him near the airship watching the vikings hike up to the top of the plateau. He was sitting on a flat rock. Serenity sat next to him.

"Hi," she said softly. "Still nervous?"

"Yeah," Chris said. Serenity put her arm around his shoulders.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" she asked. She sounded worried. Chris sighed and held her free hand.

"I'm not sure," he said. Serenity gave his hand a soft squeeze.

"I know what will get your mind of your worries, at least for a while," she said. "How about I read some more of Dragon Slippers?"

"That does sound nice right now," Chris admitted. "I don't know if it will it help though."

"Well we won't know until we try," Serenity said.

"Okay," Chris said. They stood up and went back up to the top of the plateau, hand in hand.

When they got there they found the vikings and their dragons there as well. They had obviously come to see Aurora's eggs. They arrived at the same time as Chris and Serenity did. Toothless stood beside his rider.

"Re said you laid you eggs last night," said Astrid to Aurora.

"Sure did," said Aurora happily. She lifted her and her eggs gleamed in the light. She got to her feet so everyone could see them better.

"Wow new eggs," exclaimed Fishlegs. "I don't know how to hold it all in." He approached with such eagerness that he accidently kicked one of the eggs and it banged against the other. Aurora roared and swiped her talons at him to get him to back off.

"You should be more careful Fishlegs," said Hiccup. "Mother dragons are very protective of their eggs. Remember the Changewings?"

"Hiccup I of all vikings am very careful around dragon eggs," Fishlegs said smugly. He approached the eggs again, and Aurora hissed a warning.

"Come on Aurora I'm not going to harm them," said Fishlegs. The Queen didn't look convinced. Fishlegs went closer to her eggs and this time Re intervened. He ran in between Fishlegs and the eggs, growling.

"How about we go back to the boat," Hiccup suggested. "We can come visit again tomorrow."

"What ever you say chief," said Fishlegs. He turned and left.

"Sorry about that Re, Aurora," said Astrid. "We'll give Fishlegs a good lecture before we come back."

"See that you do," Re said. "Serenity told us what happened with the Changewing eggs, and if that happens with these eggs we will do exactly what those female Chanewings did, search your whole village until we find them and we will kill if we have to. I don't like to threaten allies but I will if necessary."

"It won't be necessary sir," said Hiccup. "I will make sure this never happens again." With that the vikings followed Fishlegs back to where they put their ship. Re relaxed his defensive posture and Aurora laid down beside her eggs. Serenity and Chris sat in their chairs. Everyone calmed down from all that. Serenity brought out Dragon Slippers and continued reading it to all the dragons. Chris listened to it and found that it did take his mind off his worries. Pictured what was happening in the story and after half an hour he didn't even know what his worries were.

Serenity read clear into the night. Re lit the campfire so she would have enough light to continues reading. They were all so into the story that time totally got away from them and before they knew it, it was time for bed. Serenity marked her place and closed the book.

"We're almost done with that?" said Aurora, she sounded disappointed.

"Don't worry I have the other two," Serenity said. "And I brought Wings of Fire."

"Great," said Re. "At least we won't die of boredom." He bid Chris and Serenity good night then laid down beside his mate. Tenor and Windwalker woke up for fishing, they had been listening to the story while they slept.

"You know what would be wonderful," said Aurora.

"What?" asked Re.

"If those two had a child of their own," Aurora said, gesturing to the tent with her wing.

"That would be nice," said Tenor. "Serenity has said before that she wanted a child but was afraid she would have to give up her job."

"Well she's earned a break," said Aurora. "She's worked so hard to save lives."

"True," said Tenor. "Well we'll be off."

"Perhaps you two should hatch an egg," Aurora suggested. "We can start the next generation."

"Good idea ma'am," said Windwalker. "But it probably won't be for a while." She spread her wings and flew after her mate. They both vanished into the night. Aurora snuggled close to Re and he draped his wing around her. She checked her eggs one last time before going to sleep.

Early the next morning before Chris and Serenity came out of their tent the young dragon riders came up to the top of the plateau. Hiccup and Astrid had talked Fishlegs into apologizing to Re and Aurora and making him promise not to go near those eggs unless given permission. When they got there the campsite was very quiet. Re and Aurora were both sleeping in their shelter curled, Re had his wing over Aurora and Aurora had her wing over her eggs. Suddenly Aurora stirred and opened her silver eyes. When she saw the riders she sat up.

"Sorry to wake you Aurora," said Astrid.

"It's okay," Aurora whispered. "What do you need?" They all turned to Fishlegs. He stepped forward. Aurora tensed up and flared her nostrils. She wrapped her tail around the wing that was folded over her eggs.

"I just came to apologize for yesterday," Fishlegs said. "I didn't mean to be careless." Aurora seemed to relax.

"And I promise not to approach the eggs until you give me permission," Fishlegs continued. Aurora lifted her wing and checked her eggs before getting to her feet. She went over and stood right in front of Fishlegs. She could smell his fear.

"You are forgiven," she said. Then she stepped back. "You didn't have to get up so early to tell me this."

"We're returning to Berk this morning," Hiccup said. "I wanted to get this cleared up before we left."

"I see," said Aurora.

"We'll come back when they hatch," said Hiccup.

"I have another idea," said Aurora. "When my eggs hatch, and the other eggs on this island we'll transport them all back to Berk using that half a ship I came here in. And it would save you a trip."

"Sounds like a great idea," said Hiccup. "When will they hatch again?"

"Two months," said Aurora. "Maybe less."

"Alright," said Hiccup. "We'll see you then." He and the other riders went back down to their ship and Aurora went back to sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

As it got closer to the day the eggs were due to hatch the worse Chris's nightmares got. Instead of waking up at the end of them he just saw them over and over again, repeating themselves. He wouldn't wake up until Serenity woke him up after she checked the progress of Aurora's eggs, clear passed noon. When she asked him what was wrong he just said he was having more nightmares. Each time he said so Serenity would give him a huge hug and tell him that everything was going to be okay and that she was there for him. It was her saying all this that kept him from going mad. When she finished what little work she had, Serenity would then continue reading Dragon Slippers until she reached the end of the book. But like she said she had the next book Dragon Flight and started on that. They all enjoyed listening to the story, it made the days go by faster. And before they knew it two months had gone by at the speed of a Night Fury.

One day, while Re was out at sea, Serenity was checking on the progress of the eggs. She used her stethoscope to hear what was going on inside the eggshell. She could now hear movement inside, claws scraping against the shell.

"They're almost ready," Serenity said. "They'll hatch any day." Aurora let out a huge breath she didn't know she was holding, streams of smoke billowed out of her nostrils.

"Wow so soon," she said.

"Have you thought of any names for them?" Serenity asked as she sat in her chair beside Chris.

"Well, I want their names to be unique," Aurora said. "Something like Skye or Pixie, and that's just for the girl."

"Well I'm sure it'll come to you when they hatch," Serenity said.

"I can't wait," said Aurora, sounding excited.

"Can ask you something?" asked Serenity. "When we get back home with these two, who's going to look after them while you and Re are at sea?"

"Come on you know the answer to that Serenity," said Aurora. "Dragons, like birds, work together to raise her hatchlings. While I'm out at sea Re will look after these two, and vice versa."

"Even a King and Queen?" Serenity asked.

"Yes, even a King and Queen," said Aurora. "Why do you ask?" Serenity looked at Chris who was looking very stressed.

"What if something happens that calls you away from the castle?" asked Serenity. "Or you decide to go fishing together?"

"Well that's what those two are for," said Aurora looking over at Tenor and Windwalker who were fast asleep.

"Chris and I could help out too if needed," Serenity offered.

"That's very thoughtful of you Serenity," said Aurora. "But young dragons can be quite the handful, and besides I have seen your future and I see a beautiful white flower that is courageous, noble, and not a little daring. And this flower will be keeping you far too busy to worry about these two."

"Must be a vary special flower," said Serenity.

"Yes, a very special flower," said Aurora. At that moment Re came back from the sea and landed.

"Anything yet?" he asked.

"Not a crack," said Aurora. She checked her eggs, the were as still and quiet as rocks. Re turned to Serenity and Chris.

"When's the last time you two went flying together?" he asked.

"Not since we got here," Chris said, speaking finally. "We both ride nocturnal dragons you know."

"Well that's true," Re said. "But it's sunset now, they'll be waking up any minuet."

"Okay," said Serenity. "You coming Chris?"

"Yeah, hopefully flying will clear my head," Chris said. They both got up from their chairs. Serenity put on her fingerless gloves and her hat. Tenor and Windwalker woke up and Serenity and Chris saddled and mounted them.

"When we come back we'll finish Dragon Flight," Serenity said.

"Sounds good," Re said. Serenity and Chris clicked the reins and the two dragons took off. Re and Aurora watched them fly away.

"Something's bothering Chris I know it is," said Aurora. "He's looked so nervous from day one and it's only gotten worse."

"Serenity said he was going to tell us what was bothering him," Re said. "And he hasn't yet."

"We should ask him about it," said Aurora. Re nodded in agreement. He lit the campfire and laid down beside her.

Out over the ocean Chris and Serenity flew side by side watching the sunset. They were quiet for a while just watching the sun and ocean. Then they saw a lonely sea stack and landed on it. Chris felt slightly better.

"Those eggs will be hatching soon won't they?" he said.

"Yes, then we can return home," Serenity said. Chris dismounted and walked to the edge of the sea stack. Serenity dismounted and joined him.

"I don't know how to thank you Serenity," Chris said. "I was having one of the roughest times in my life and you were always there to tell me everything was going to be okay."

"It was the least I could do," said Serenity. "And for the record I appreciate you being there when I had to relive that memory about the wolves. How are your nightmares doing?"

"Worse," Chris said. "They never end until you wake me up and save me from them." Serenity held his hand and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"You can make these nightmares go away," she said. "If you just tell your parents about this." Chris sighed and gripped her hand.

"Alright I will," he said.

"I'll come with you," Serenity said. They got on their dragons and went back to the island. The flight seemed to last forever. The stars were out along with the full moon. The two dragons almost vanished in the dark except for their glowing eyes.

They soon arrived at the island and landed on the plateau. Chris and Serenity dismounted. Re and Aurora were laying in their shelter dozing off. Tenor and Windwalker flew back out to sea. Chris approached his parents. He took a deep breath.

"Mom, Dad can I talk to you?" he asked. Re and Aurora sat up.

"Yes you can talk to us anytime," Aurora said. She and Re got to their feet. "Serenity will you watch the eggs?"

"Sure," said Serenity. "Don't go far." She moved her chair into the shelter and sat down. Re, Aurora, and Chris went to the opposite site of the plateau.

"What's on your mind Chris?" asked Aurora.

"For the passed three months now I've been having these nightmares about failing at my roll as a big brother," Chris said. "They've been getting worse recently. They don't end until Serenity saves me. I didn't tell you this because one of my nightmares showed Mom smashing the eggs to make me feel better, I'm really sorry. I didn't want you to be disappointed."

"Well we are a little disappointed that you didn't tell us sooner," said Re.

"Serenity said you would say that," Chris said, feeling better by second.

"She knows us well," said Aurora. "So what else did your nightmares show you?" Chris took a deep breath and told his parents everything. All about what he saw in his nightmares and all the times Serenity had helped him. He also told them about the nightmare about Serenity and the wolves. When he finished he stopped and waited for his parents to say something.

"Well I can certainly see why you would be nervous about being a big brother," said

Aurora. "But that's nothing to kill yourself over. I know you will make a great brother."

"And no matter what does happen we're still family," said Re. "These hatchlings are just new additions to it."

"So you won't leave me in charge of my siblings by myself?" Chris asked, hopeful.

"Only if you want us to," said Aurora. Chris let out a huge sigh of relief.

"All you have to do is be there for them, like Serenity was for you," said Re. "That's what family does." Chris felt so relieved that he hugged both his parents, one at a time.

"Thank you," he said.

"Next time you have a problem just tell us that what we're here for," said Re.

"Yes sir," Chris said. Then at that very moment there came the unmistakable sound of cracking. They all tensed up and looked at one another.

"Hey guys come here quick!" Serenity called. The three of them ran back to the shelter and Re relit the campfire and they all looked at the eggs. Aurora laid next to them. One of the eggs had a big crack in it and they could hear the hatchling moving about. The egg rolled over as the hatchling tried to break it open. More cracks appeared in the shell. Then it burst open and the little hatchling was upside down. It flipped over and looked around.

"It's the girl," said Aurora. The baby dragon was teal green with violet horns and spins, and lavender colored eyes. She sneezed and let out a small jet of jade green fire. At that moment the other egg started to crack. The little Princess turned her attention to the other egg and began pecking at it. Aurora nuzzled her daughter and gently pulled her away from the other egg. It then burst open and the other hatchling got to his feet.

"That one's a boy," said Aurora. This other hatchling was blood red with gold horns, spines, claws, and eyes. There was also gold around his mouth. Both hatchlings were the size of piglets.

"Wow, they're so beautiful," said Serenity. Aurora nuzzled them and licked them. They licked her back.

"What are we going to call them?" asked Re.

"Well, the name Apollo comes to my mind," said Aurora.

"The Greek god of music?" said Serenity.

"Sure, it's a great name for the boy," said Aurora. Serenity knelt down and held her hand out to Apollo. He approached and sniffed her hand. Then Serenity gently scratched him behind his little horns. He purred and leaned into her hand.

"Hello Apollo," Serenity said softly. Then the little girl came over, wanting some attention as well.

"Why don't you two pick a name for her," said Aurora. "Something really special." Serenity carefully picked up the little Princess and stood up, cradling her against her body. The Princess purred louder when Serenity kept petting her. Chris came a bit closer and Serenity turned to face him. He looked at his little sister and she looked back at him with curiosity. Chris held his hand out to her and she wormed her tiny head under his hand. She let out a puppy like bark.

"How about Avalon," Chris suggested.

"Ooh that's really pretty," said Aurora.

"Yeah, it means apples in Welsh I think," said Serenity. "It sounds perfect." Suddenly Avalon squirmed against Serenity's grip, trying to get to Chris. Serenity handed her to him, and Chris held his baby sister stroking her neck. As he looked down at her he realized that Serenity had been right, his worries were just an illusion and they vanished from the moment he saw his siblings. As he looked at them his whole perspective on his nightmares changed, he wasn't worried about failing his family, he had been worried about loosing them. In all his nightmares someone in his family had been lost in some way. As he came to this conclusion he also realized what Lord Draco had been trying to tell him the whole time. He was very, very lucky to have his family and he had a chance to make sure nothing bad happened to them, especially his new siblings. He looked up at the constellation Draco which gleamed down at him with reassurance. He said a silent prayer of thanks to the Dragon God.

"How are you doing?" Serenity asked.

"Better than I've had in three months," Chris said.

"That's great Chris," said Aurora, getting to her feet. "I'm glad you're feeling better."

"I couldn't have done it with any of you," Chris said. He set Avalon down next to Apollo. Both hatchlings yawned and stretched.

"I think it's bedtime," Re said. "We can head home tomorrow."

"Home," said Serenity dreamily.

"I am ready to go home," Chris said.

"Get some rest first," Aurora said. She laid down in the shelter and Re laid beside her. Apollo and Avalon curled up together under their mother's wing. Serenity and Chris went inside their tent for the last time. Chris fell asleep finally at peace after three months of torture. He didn't have a single nightmare that night.


	7. Chapter 7

The next morning Serenity and Chris packed up their camping gear and took down their tent. While they did so they watched Apollo and Avalon play together in the Dragonnip. Re and Aurora went down to ask if the dragons Berk, whose eggs had hatched already, if they wanted a lift back home in the airship. They gratefully accepted. They got the airship ready for the trip. Tenor and Windwalker helped take down the campsite. Tenor filled in the fire pit while Chris saddled Windwalker. The dragons came to the top of the plateau with the airship. Serenity put the sail they had used as a tarp and put it on the floor of the airship.

"Are we ready?" asked Aurora. Avalon and Apollo were still rolling around, they loved the smell of Dragonnip.

"We are," said Serenity as she put the last of the camping gear on Tenor's saddle with her medical bag. Aurora used her magic to make the shelter vanish along with the Dragonnip. Apollo and Avalon looked around shocked.

"Where did the grass go?" asked Apollo. "I liked playing in it."

"We're going to go find more grass to play in," said Aurora. She went over and picked up her hatchlings by the tail and carried them over to the airship and put them inside with the other hatchlings. Chris and Serenity mounted their dragons and were the first to take off. Re, Aurora, and the dragons of Berk grabbed hold of the ropes tied to the ship and lifted it off the ground. The hatchlings squealed in delight as they soared over the island and over the ocean. They flew through the morning fog and soon lost sight of the island.

"It was fun camping on that island," said Chris. "Shame we have to leave it."

"That's why I don't stay in one place for very long when I travel," said Serenity. "I don't want to get too attached to a place I'll never see again. I feel just as at home in the dragon saddle as I do in Draconia and Berk." She patted Tenor on the neck. They flew higher and higher with the airship. It was very quiet in the sky. There were no birds or whales in the ocean.

"Why isn't there ever any wildlife?" asked Chris. "I haven't seen a single whale in the many flights I've taken over the ocean."

"You just have to know where to look," said Serenity. "I've seen plenty of wildlife while traveling. Come I'll show you." She steered Tenor away from the airship, since Tenor and Windwalker weren't hauling it. Chris steered his dragon after her.

"Where are you two going?" Re called.

"Whale watching," Serenity called back. "We won't be gone long." She and Chris flew low over the ocean. Soon they saw the spouts of whales on the horizon, a lot of whales. Suddenly the two dragons were surrounded by black dorsal fins and shiny black backs. Half a dozen long finned Pilot Whales jumped all around the two dragons, followed by a whole pod of Common Dolphins.

"Wow that's a lot of Pilot Whales," said Chris. Suddenly one jumped clear out of the water and splashed back down, several others copied him.

"Why do they do that?" asked Windwalker.

"Probably because it's fun," said Chris. He clicked the reins and Windwalker sped up. Tenor did the same and both dragons began flipping and spinning right alongside the whales and dolphins. Tenor even zipped underneath a dolphin that jumped a good ten feet in the air, and made it. The dragons danced with the whales and dolphins until they went deep into the water. Then they flew back to the airship.

"That was fun," Chris said laughing for the first time in a while. "We should do that more often."

"Sure, but not too often it'll old," said Serenity. She lead the way back to the airship and rejoined the group.

Berk soon came over the horizon. The dragons slowly began their decent. Some of the hatchlings had fallen asleep. The airship got closer and soon reached the two statues that marked the entrance to the Berk harbor. They soared over the docks and finally landed in the plaza. Re perched on the prow of the airship and the other dragons landed on the ground. The vikings paused in their activities. Hiccup and Toothless came out of the blacksmith shop.

"Hi guys good to see you," Hiccup said.

"Good to see you," said Aurora. "We brought your dragons back and their hatchlings." They all turned to the airship as the hatchlings disembarked and reunited with their parents who reunited with their riders. Apollo and Avalon were the last ones off. Everyone was looking at them, making them feel uneasy.

"Are those yours?" asked Astrid as she and the other riders came out of the crowd.

"Yes, this is Avalon and Apollo," said Aurora. The two hatchlings cautiously approached the riders.

"Wow, they look great," said Astrid. Re jumped to the ground and stood next to his mate. Fishlegs got excited again.

"Ooh they're so cute!" he exclaimed. He went over to pick on up and almost stepped on Avalon's tail. She yelped and dashed behind Astrid. Both Re and Aurora growled. Fishlegs backed off. Apollo flinched when Fishlegs walked passed him but didn't move. Astrid turned to the little dragon who looked back up at her. Avalon chirped her hello.

"Sorry about that," said Hiccup. "Fishlegs gets a little too excited about new dragons."

"Yes so it seems," said Re. "I just hope he doesn't get those new dragons hurt or killed." Toothless quietly approached Apollo.

"Hello," he said.

"Hi," said Apollo shyly. He carefully approached the Night Fury, who gave him a gummy smile. Apollo looked surprised.

"Hey you don't have any teeth," he said, getting a closer look. Toothless flexed his jaws and out came his teeth. Avalon watched all this, still behind Astrid. Toothless pulled his teeth back into his gums.

"Wow, that's cool," said Apollo. He put his front paws on Toothless's lower jaw to see where his teeth went. Aurora then gave a short bark and Apollo landed on all fours again and went to her side.

"We should be heading home," said Re.

"Hey stop sniffing my feet baby dragon," Tuffnut snapped at Avalon who had been sniffing Tuff's feet. Avalon growled at him, then she pounced on his face and began chewing on his nose.

"OW GETITOFFGETITOFFGETITOFF!" Tuff screamed trying to pry his nose out of Avalon's teeth. Ruffnut just stood there laughing. Avalon turned her attention to Ruffnut, then pounced on her face and began chewing on her nose. Now she was the one screaming and trying to pry the dragon off.

"Hey that is funny," said Tuffnut, now the one laughing. Ruffnut began spinning all over the place and was soon rescued by Hiccup. He gently grabbed Avalon and tickled her chin. She let go and Hiccup put her on the ground. Avalon joined her Apollo next to her mother. Aurora lifted both her hatchlings onto her back. Serenity and Tenor flew back up to the hospital so Serenity could drop off her camping gear and the sail.

"Thanks for racing with us," Hiccup said to the Draconians.

"Oh no problem," said Aurora. "It was fun, despite what happened at the end."

"We might come back for another race," said Re.

"We look forward to it," said Astrid. Serenity and Tenor came back and the Draconians took off. They flew in formation back over the docks and back over the ocean.

They reached their own waters the following afternoon. The two hatchings flew for short distances before they tired out and rode on their mothers back to strengthen their wings. The five dragons flew over their Golden Gates and soon their castle greeted them with open doors. Re and Aurora couldn't wait to tell the nation about their new Prince and Princess.


End file.
